Because of my background as a writer, I was hired by a young author to work through the developmental, structural, and final edits of a fantasy novel that was being prepared for the query process. The author—a debut but not a first timer to the completion of a novel—came to me with an understanding that the book needed a lot of work, but not idea where to start or how to ensure that the changes being made were right for the modern publication market.

Together we set goals for the editing process, decided what her ultimate goals were for the project, and evaluated the project for the kind of work it needed to achieve those goals without compromising the integrity of the story being told. When we were both satisfied with the plan we had come up with, I took the novel and began the development process.

On the author’s behalf and at their request, around the midpoint of my editing, I interviewed, hired, and collaborated with a cover artist to create a cover for the novel in case the author decided not to pursue traditional publication.

After developmental and structural editing was complete, the author requested that I work alongside their outside editor to polish the opening pages and conduct final edits on the entire novel body. Then, in preparation for the query process, I worked with the author to write a query letter, research literary agents, and familiarize themself with the way querying looks and feels.